The Urantia Book -- Part IV. The Life And
Teachings Of JesusPAPER 172: Section 3.
The Start For Jerusalem

P1880:7,172:3.1
Bethany was about two miles from the temple, and it was half past one that
Sunday afternoon when Jesus made ready to start for Jerusalem. He had feelings
of profound affection for Bethany and its simple people. Nazareth, Capernaum,
and Jerusalem had rejected him, but Bethany had accepted him, had believed
in him. And it was in this small village, where almost every man, woman, and
child were believers, that he chose to perform the
mightiest work of his earth
bestowal, the resurrection of Lazarus. He did not raise Lazarus that the villagers
might believe, but rather because they already believed. P1880:8,172:3.2
All morning Jesus had thought about his entry into Jerusalem. Heretofore he
had always endeavored to suppress all public acclaim of him as the Messiah,
but it was different now; he was nearing the end of his career in the flesh,
his death had been decreed by the Sanhedrin, and no harm could come from allowing
his disciples to give free expression to their feelings, just as might occur
if he elected to make a formal and public entry into the city. P1881:1,172:3.3
Jesus did not decide to make this public entrance into Jerusalem as a last
bid for popular favor nor as a final grasp for power. Neither did he do it
altogether to satisfy the human longings of his disciples and apostles. Jesus
entertained none of the illusions of a fantastic dreamer; he well knew what
was to be the outcome of this visit. P1881:2,172:3.4
Having decided upon making a public entrance into Jerusalem, the Master was
confronted with the necessity of choosing a proper method of executing such
a resolve. Jesus thought over all of the many more or less contradictory so-called
Messianic
prophesies, but there seemed to be only one which was at all appropriate
for him to follow. Most of these prophetic utterances depicted a king, the
son and successor of David, a bold and aggressive temporal deliverer of all
Israel from the yoke of foreign domination. But there was one Scripture that
had sometimes been associated with the Messiah by those who held more to the
spiritual concept of his mission, which Jesus thought might consistently be
taken as a guide for his projected entry into Jerusalem. This Scripture was
found in Zechariah, and it said: "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout,
O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, your king comes to you. He is just and he
brings salvation. He comes as the lowly one, riding upon an ass, upon a colt,
the
foal of an ass."

P1881:3,172:3.5
A warrior king always entered a city riding upon a horse; a king on a mission
of peace and friendship always entered riding upon an ass. Jesus would not
enter Jerusalem as a man on horseback, but he was willing to enter
peacefully
and with good will as the Son of Man on a donkey.

P1881:4,172:3.6
Jesus had long tried by direct teaching to impress upon his apostles and his
disciples that his kingdom was not of this world, that it was a purely spiritual
matter; but he had not succeeded in this effort. Now, what he had failed to
do by plain and personal teaching, he would attempt to accomplish by a symbolic
appeal. Accordingly, right after the noon lunch, Jesus called Peter and John,
and after directing them to go over to Bethphage, a neighboring village a
little off the main road and a short distance northwest of Bethany, he further
said: "Go to Bethphage, and when you come to the junction of the roads, you
will find the colt of an ass tied there. Loose the colt and bring it back
with you. If anyone asks you why you do this, merely say, `The Master has
need of him.'" And when the two apostles had gone into Bethphage as the Master
had directed, they found the colt tied near his mother in the open street
and close to a house on the corner. As Peter began to untie the colt, the
owner came over and asked why they did this, and when Peter answered him as
Jesus had directed, the man said: "If your Master is Jesus from Galilee, let
him have the colt." And so they returned bringing the colt with them. P1881:5,172:3.7
By this time several hundred pilgrims had gathered around Jesus and his apostles.
Since midforenoon the visitors passing by on their way to the Passover had
tarried. Meanwhile, David Zebedee and some of his former messenger associates
took it upon themselves to hasten on down to Jerusalem, where they effectively
spread the report among the throngs of visiting pilgrims about the temple
that Jesus of Nazareth was making a triumphal entry into the city. Accordingly,
several thousand of these visitors flocked forth to greet this
much-talked-of
prophet and wonder-worker, whom some believed to be the Messiah. This multitude,
coming out from Jerusalem, met Jesus and the crowd going into the city just
after they had passed over the brow of Olivet and had begun the descent into
the city. P1882:1,172:3.8
As the procession started out from Bethany, there was great enthusiasm among
the festive crowd of disciples, believers, and visiting pilgrims, many hailing
from Galilee and Perea. Just before they started, the twelve women of the
original women's corps, accompanied by some of their associates, arrived on
the scene and joined this unique procession as it moved on joyously toward
the city. P1882:2,172:3.9
Before they started, the Alpheus twins put their cloaks on the donkey and
held him while the Master got on. As the procession moved toward the summit
of Olivet, the festive crowd threw their garments on the ground and brought
branches from the near-by trees in order to make a carpet of honor for the
donkey bearing the royal Son, the promised Messiah. As the merry crowd moved
on toward Jerusalem, they began to sing, or rather to shout in unison, the
Psalm, "Hosanna to the son of David; blessed is he who comes in the name of
the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed be the kingdom that comes down from
heaven." P1882:3,172:3.10
Jesus was lighthearted and cheerful as they moved along until he came to the
brow of Olivet, where the city and the temple towers came into full view;
there the Master stopped the procession, and a great silence came upon all
as they beheld him weeping. Looking down upon the vast multitude coming forth
from the city to greet him, the Master, with much emotion and with tearful
voice, said: "O Jerusalem, if you had only known, even you, at least in this
your day, the things which belong to your peace, and which you could so freely
have had! But now are these glories about to be hid from your eyes. You are
about to reject the Son of Peace and turn your backs upon the gospel of salvation.
The days will soon come upon you wherein your enemies will cast a trench around
about you and lay siege to you on every side; they shall utterly destroy you,
insomuch that not one stone shall be left upon another. And all this shall
befall you because you knew not the time of your divine visitation. You are
about to reject the gift of God, and all men will reject you." P1882:4,172:3.11
When he had finished speaking, they began the descent of Olivet and presently
were joined by the multitude of visitors who had come from Jerusalem waving
palm branches, shouting hosannas, and otherwise expressing
gleefulness and
good fellowship. The Master had not planned that these crowds should come
out from Jerusalem to meet them; that was the work of others. He never premeditated
anything which was dramatic. P1882:5,172:3.12
Along with the multitude which poured out to welcome the Master, there came
also many of the Pharisees and his other enemies. They were so much perturbed
by this sudden and unexpected outburst of popular acclaim that they feared
to arrest him lest such action precipitate an open revolt of the populace.
They greatly feared the attitude of the large numbers of visitors, who had
heard much of Jesus, and who, many of them, believed in him. P1882:6,172:3.13
As they neared Jerusalem, the crowd became more demonstrative, so much so
that some of the Pharisees made their way up alongside Jesus and said: "Teacher,
you should rebuke your disciples and exhort them to behave more seemly." Jesus
answered: "It is only fitting that these children should welcome the Son of
Peace, whom the chief priests have rejected. It would be useless to stop them
lest in their stead these stones by the roadside cry out." P1882:7,172:3.14
The Pharisees hastened on ahead of the procession to rejoin the Sanhedrin,
which was then in session at the temple, and they reported to their associates:
"Behold, all that we do is of no avail; we are confounded by this Galilean.
The people have gone mad over him; if we do not stop these ignorant ones,
all the world will go after him." P1883:1,172:3.15
There really was no deep significance to be attached to this superficial and
spontaneous outburst of popular enthusiasm. This welcome, although it was
joyous and sincere, did not betoken any real or deep-seated conviction in
the hearts of this festive multitude. These same crowds were equally as willing
quickly to reject Jesus later on this week when the Sanhedrin once took a
firm and decided stand against him, and when they became disillusioned --
when they realized that Jesus was not going to establish the kingdom in accordance
with their long-cherished expectations. P1883:2,172:3.16
But the whole city was mightily stirred up, insomuch that everyone asked,
"Who is this man?" And the multitude answered, "This is the prophet of Galilee,
Jesus of Nazareth."